Zoe Zombie

Horror Movie Madness! – Drag Me To Hell (2009)

// August 2nd, 2009 // Comments Off // film

Supernatural horror films are the only type of films that give me nightmares and make me paranoid. I had nightmares after watching The Exorcist for the first time when I was 22. I was a little precautious that Drag Me To Hell may contribute to the same insomnia issues, but I was pleasantly proved wrong.

Drag Me to Hell begins with plain-jane loan officer, Christine Brown, committing an act of greed for the sake of her own ambitions when she denies a loan extension to a foul woman, Mrs Ganush, who is to be evicted from her home. Mrs Ganush morphs into a psycho stalker and places a curse on Christine during an after-work car park scuffle. After seeing a psychic, she is informed that the curse will create 3 days of a living hell for her until she is eventually dragged to Hell.

Sam and Ivan Raimi wrote the screenplay for this film shortly after completing Army of Darkness, but Sam went off to do Spiderman, which delayed the production of Drag Me To Hell. If the Evil Dead series have shown us anything, Raimi has always had an incredible talent of mixing horror and comedy together. Throughout Drag, I was unsure of whether I should be laughing or puking. Bugs spewing out of mouths, an insane nose bleed and digging up a grave in the middle of a storm – so outlandish that it both amuses and terrifies which makes Drag an absolute pleasure to watch.

Great effects mixed with a bit of whimsy, gore, frights and humour makes Drag Me To Hell the ideal movie to watch for anyone out for a fun ride. And it’s perfectly acceptable for viewing right before the lights go out.

Posted via web from Jessicatron’s PREposterous thoughts

Inside (À l’intérieur)

// May 17th, 2008 // Comments Off // opinion

I finally got the chance to watch Inside last night. And I must say that this is one of my favourite movies I have ever seen. An urgent warning to those who cannot stand the sight of blood or cannot sit through a horror movie: you will not like this movie. Although there is a lot more too it than just gore, this movie is definitely not for the faint hearted. I was even covering my eyes throughout the film which is something I very rarely do when I watch horror films.

I found the film extremely interesting (aside from all the gore) in the fact that it conveyed the true nature of human behaviour on many different levels. There is nothing scarier than two women going balls out psycho at each other for either their survival or a baby. As well the as maternal instincts, there were the very basic instinct for survival. The main character was so depressed over the death of her boyfriend that she couldn’t even think to give birth to the baby she was carrying. Once someone threatened her existence and the existence of her unborn child, she immediately fights for survival when only minutes before she was probably wishing she were dead.

I loved the feeling of claustrophobia in this film. A majority of the duration of the film was inside the main character’s home. It certainly gives a sense of being trapped in a nightmare. All the surrounding houses are oblivious to the bloodbath that is occuring inside.

This film is sad, twisted and sickening all at the same time. If you are a fan of films that make you sit on the edge of your seat and have some sort of twisted logic to it all, then this is for you.

They write books about horror now! 8 Horror Movie Books you must read.

// May 9th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // opinion

I was brought up watching horror movies, thanks to my cousins who constantly were able to hire out such ridiculous movies like Chucky and Halloween. Looking back, I have no idea how our parents were able to know that we were in a room by ourselves watching things that parents would normally protest. Or maybe they had no idea. However, I never really began to truly appreciate and enjoy a good horror movie until roughly ten years ago. I have watched an endless amount of these movies, even my favourites countless times and the only answer I have for why I like horror is I find them truly entertaining and also very funny. So if you’re like me and you like reading about your favourite genre, here is a list of 8 Horror Movie Books that’ll get you on your way.

1.Horror: The Definitive Guide to the Cinema of Fear – James Marriot.

This is a great reference book, both for newbies to the genre and for die-hards. This book provides brief plot summaries to films ranging from the 1930s to 2005 with pictures along the way. There are also great summaries on the turn of the genre as time goes on, contributions to the genre and different traits such as Zombies and Serial Killers.

2. The Encyclopedia of Horror – Richard Davis.

This book is not directly about Horror films, but more about the aspects of Horror itself. It studies creatures such as Vampires and Werewolves and the folklore behind them. It ties them in with the films which makes for interesting reading.

3. Shock! Horror! Astounding Artwork from the Video-Nasty Era – Francis Brewster, Marc Morris, Harvey Fenton.

This book is absolutely fantastic! Page sized posters in alphabetical order by movie title throughout. Filled with banned or censored video covers from the Video Nasty era. There is also vast information about “video nasties” which describes various films at the time and what got them banned in the first place. Very informative and also a great creative inspiration in terms of illustration.

4. The Psychotronic Video Guide to Film – Michael J. Weldon.

There is not only horror films listed in this book, but also sci-fi, fantasy and even porn. A lot more comprehensive than Horror: The Definitive Guide to the Cinema of Fear. This book runs through over 3000 films – some famous and some you may never find. At over 650 pages, it is one of the most complete guides to the weird, wacky and gruesome films.

5. 60 Great Horror Movie Posters – Bruce Hershenson.

Well presented selection of 60 Horror Movie Posters on gloss paper. They are page sized posters so they truly show off their creativity. It is interesting to see the evolution of the posters as time goes on.

6. Nightmare, USA – Stephen Thrower.

One of my absolute favourite books of the genre. Thrower puts together such a comprehensive book on American Horror Films between 1970 – 1985. This is similar in size to a phone book but there is no space wasted here. Every horror movie fan should own this book!

7. Trash: The Graphic Genius of Xploitation Movie Posters – Jacques Boyreau.

Mainly focusing on the different aspects of the exploitation genre, this book is a compilation of the best and the weirdest exploitation movie posters with varying prints throughout. Not exactly the best book out there on the subject, but certainly one of the more interesting ones.

8. Sleazoid Express: A Mind-Twisting Tour Through the Grindhouse Cinema of Times Square – Bill Landis, Michelle Clifford.

At first I was disappointed with this book because it looked like a text book that you would find at any university campus. But as I began to read, I felt that the book truly captured the essence of 42nd Street and the movies that played there. Some find this book tedious with it’s focus on certain movies, however I feel that a lot of the movies brought into focus were certainly some of the most profound and affective. This book is a must read.